February 16, 2025
by Jamison Kruse
KANSAS CITY, MO -- There was some discussion last year for the FaR Out 18 Black team not getting a nod to the 2024 Power Pools of the TC NIT. This year, they got the nod and were looking a bit out of place on the opening day. 18 Black opened up Triple Crown with a trio of defeats. All of which were quite entertaining matches, just ones that the west Michigan club couldn't quite seem to pull out.
However, the comfort that comes with being in a power pool is that an 0-3 Day 1 doesn't knock you out of contention. With a newfound fire and fixed focus, FaR Out locked in today. They needed to win the first game of the day to make the round of 32. Black would cruise past CUVC with a minor scare in Set 2 being decided by 26-24 decision.
They'd take this wave of momentum and ride it all the way through the first rounds of the Elite Bracket. Against Seal Beach 18 Black, it was all FaR Out. The women in Gold were in rhythm nearly the entire match. They would again sweep their competitors by a healthy margin in the first set, before letting things get tight in the second. Despite this, FO had all the control throughout the first two matches.
The round of 16 would look to play a similar story as the first two matches of the day. FaR Out shoots out to the first set victory, earning the nod by a score of 25-19. Dallas Premier was not going to be out for the count, however. The North Texas team would find their own rhythm while capitalizing on some sloppy play from the Michigan side. It is the last match of the day, the last set of the day. The tie breaker was for all the marbles. A win would send either team to the Elite 8 and fight for a Triple Crown title. The alternative would send a team fighting for a spot in the top 10.
Within the first few points of this third set, you knew that FaR Out was not going down without a fight and they weren't leaving this gym without their name in an Elite 8 matchup for tomorrow morning. Everything from the serve to the pass, to the attack and to the block. It was all there and Premier simply couldn't find the right answers to materialize.
18 Black looked to their two heavy bombers on the pin, OH Karis Chatfield (East Tennessee State) and OH Cambria Gaier (South Alabama) to lead the charge. The two have easily cemented themselves as two of the most all-around pin duos in this tournament. Both play six rotations and were doing everything right. Chatfield, a 2026 playing up, was electric on all fronts of the game. She passes like a second libero on the court and her vision across the net is top tier. Mixed with a heavy arm and laser precision, she was unstoppable. Gaier was also lighting things up from both the service line and at the net.
You also cannot talk about 18 Black without the mention of their libero, 2027 standout, Mallory Johnson. This is a player who has never played with her own age group, at the very least, two years above. Johnson was lights-out and seemed to up the ante when everything was on the line. This is a player well beyond her years and she's perfect under the bright lights.
Despite the slow start to this year's NIT, FaR Out 18 Black is shaping up to be a dark horse in the 18 Elite race. With the veteran leadership of players like S Abbigail Pickard (Northern Kentucky) and MB Elyse Heffner (South Alabama) and the youth of Johnson and Chatfield, this is a team that you do not want to come across.
18 Black has a date with fellow 3Step club and familiar face, Munciana 18 Samurai to open up the final day of Triple Crown.
